• Goal

    Pronunciation

    • UK IPA: /ɡəʊl/, /ɡɔʊl/
    • US IPA: /É¡oÊŠl/
      • also IPA: /É¡lÌ©/
    • Rhymes: -əʊl

    Origin

    From Middle English gol ("boundary, limit"), from Old English *gāl ("obstacle, barrier, marker"). Related to Old English gǣlan ("to hinder, delay, impede, keep in suspense, linger, hesitate, dupe"), Old English hyġegǣlsa ("hesitating, slow, sluggish"). Cognate with Albanian ngel ("to remain, linger, hesitate, get stuck").

    Full definition of goal

    Noun

    goal

    (plural goals)
    1. A result that one is attempting to achieve.
      My lifelong goal is to get into a Hollywood movie.
      She failed in her goal to become captain of the team.
      • 2013-11-02, A shrinking slice, The goal should be to strengthen workers without hamstringing firms. Growth, rather than employment protection, is the priority. More work means a stronger labour market, which would bid up employees’ slice, as it did in America in the 1990s when unemployment was at record lows.
    2. In many sports, an area into which the players attempt to put an object.
    3. The act of placing the object into the goal.
    4. A point scored in a game as a result of placing the object into the goal.
      • 2011, April 15, Saj Chowdhury, Norwich 2-1 Nott'm Forest, The former Forest man, who passed a late fitness test, appeared to use Guy Moussi for leverage before nodding in David Fox's free-kick at the far post - his 22nd goal of the season.
    5. A noun or noun phrase that receives the action of a verb. The subject of a passive verb or the direct object of an active verb. Also called a patient, target, or undergoer.

    Synonyms

    Derived terms

    Anagrams

    © Wiktionary
    • © 2013 - 2023 All Rights Reserved